Gold and Silver
by purpleflowers01
Summary: Hermione Granger has always hated Draco Malfoy. They have entered their sixth year of Hogwarts, and Draco becomes more stressed then ever. Hermione has faced better times. Will Draco and Hermione be able to help each other or will they end up hurting each other? They try to hide their feelings, but it soon becomes too much for them to handle. A short story on Dramione for you :-) .
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Hermione's Point of View

"Oi! Hermione, come on, the train is leaving, hurry up!" Ron yells from somewhere in the crowd at King's Cross Station.

"Coming!" Hermione replies as loud as she can. She tries to make her way through the parade of students boarding the Hogwart's Express.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" Hermione says, after accidentally stepping on someone's foot.

"Excuse me,please-"

She scans the platform for Ron or Harry. Neither of them are in sight. They had probably boarded the train already. She finally reaches the train, and gets pushed aside by a burly seventh-year.

"Well I never-" She starts furiously, but spots a hand reaching towards her, probably to pull her onto the train. Unhesitantly, she grabs it, and it pulls her on,with her bags behind her.

"Thank you," she says, and as she looks around for the person, she realizes the person is gone.

"Odd," she mutters, and searches through the compartments for Harry and Ron.

She spots Rons unmistakable red hair, and immediately pulls the compartment door open. "Hermione! We've been searching everywhere for you," Harry exclaims as she slides in.

"Oh yeah? Well I've been looking everywhere for you," Hermione says. She sits down beside Harry.

"Oh come off it, Hermione. We all know you can make your way through a platform alone," Ron bites into his chocolate frog.

She shoots him murderous glare.

He grins innocently. "Anything new on You-Know-Who?"

Hermione shakes her head. "He's been keeping quiet these days,"she remembers all the long nights searching through every single newspaper. "No unusual deaths, no reports by muggles, nothing."

"Well, we shouldn't be so hopeful," Harry says.

Ron munches on his jellybeans. "Besides, Dumbledore's still here, so-" He gets cut off by the compartment door sliding open again. All three of them look up, expecting to see Ginny appear, but she doesn't.

A tall,blonde figure is standing at the doorway, flanked with two boys beside him. Hermione glares at them.

"Go away, Malfoy. No one remembers inviting you here."

Malfoy turns his icy cold gaze on her. "I don't remember asking a piece of filth like you to talk."

Hermione winces at the insult. Ron gives him a murderous look. "Shut up."

Malfoy smirks. "What? Nervous I'll give away your big secret?"

Ron's face reddens instantly. "I-I don't know what you're talking about, Malfoy."

Malfoy smirks again. "You bet you know what I'm talking about,Weasel."

Hermione stands up and pushes Malfoy out the compartment. "I said, go away," she grits her teeth.

"You dare touch me, Mudblood?"

She ignores him and kicks him in the shin. He turns for his wand, but Hermione is quicker.

"Expelliarmus!"

His wand flies into her hand, and she pushes her forearm against his neck, pinning him on the wall. She points his own wand at his throat.

"You know, I'm a bit tired of your nosiness, Malfoy. If you come even a foot near us, I swear, your own wand will slit your throat," she says quietly.

"You're threatening me with my own wand, Granger?"

"Yes, I'm pretty sure I am."

He gives a hoarse, nervous laugh.

She releases him, and he gives one last knowing smirk and strides away.

She turns back into the compartment, to see Harry and Ron with rather shocked faces.

"What?" She says irritably.

They both shake their heads. "Erm, Nothing," Harry says. "We'd better get changed for Hogwarts," he brings out his robes. Hermione nods reluctantly and backs out of the compartment. "I'll go find Ginny."

She walks towards Ginny's compartment, but is stopped by a flash of someone making their way to the bathroom in the dark, trying to pass unseen. Curious, Hermione follows it.

She reaches the corner of the end of the hall, and the train jerks forward, pushing her into the wall. She slaps a hand over her mouth to keep her from cursing as her head hits the opposite wall, hard.

Hermione spots the figure again. She catches a glimpse of the blonde head disappear into the boy's bathroom, a hand clutching his head, as if in pain.

Malfoy? She thinks, surprised.

She returns to her spot in behind the wall. What is wrong with him? Is he hurt? She thinks.

She slaps herself. Why would I be worried for him? I hate him, don't I? He's just a prissy little Slytherin.

She forces herself to turn back, towards Ginny's compartment.

She slides the door open, and looks up to see Ginny and Dean locked in a tight embrace, snogging ferociously. Hermione steps back apologizing and closes the door as silent as possible. She turns back to Ron and Harry, who ought to have been changed by now.

They are talking in hushed voices, arguing quietly. She catches a couple of 'She'll find outs' and some 'She'll go bonkers' .

"What are you two bickering about?"

They jump at the sight of her. "Hermione, you're here. We've changed and all," Ron says, trying to hide his nervousness, but Hermione notices it instantly. She eyes him, suspicious.

"Malfoy said, something about your 'big secret'. What did he mean?" She asks.

"I said I didn't know what he was talking about."

"Really?"

He nods. "I honestly had no clue what crap he was going on about."

Harry bites the inside of his mouth. "Ron's telling the truth, Hermione."

The corners of Hermione's mouth wilt. "Whatever. We're at Hogwarts 's go."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Draco's Point of View

Things have gotten more complicated than ever before.

Sixteen-year-old Draco Malfoy, has never had such stressed times.

They had arrived at Hogwarts just a couple minutes ago, and they all try to settle down at the Slytherin table.

"Oh, shut up, Zabini. We all know you nearly failed your OWL's last year, and that you're no better than us," Pansy snaps irritably at Zabini, who glares at her defiantly.

"I'll punch you right here, Parkinson."

She rolls her eyes. "Don't want me going around telling your secret feelings for the Weaslette now, do you, Blaise?"

He turns red.

"Draco already told a bunch of Ravenclaws you're in love with a blood traitor. Didn't you, Draco?"

Pansy slips her arm around Draco's shoulders. "Draco?"

He shakes his head. "Sorry, what?"

She gives a small frown. "Are you okay, Draco? You seem a bit quiet."

He nods, shouldering her arm away, as politely as he can. "I'm fine, Pansy ."

Her arm dangles awkwardly at her side. "You need to see the nurse, Drakie?"

He shakes his head again, agitated. "No, I said I'm fine. Maybe I just need to be alone for some time," he gets up. "I'll be in the common room," he says, swinging his bag over his shoulder. "And don't call me Drakie."

He moves for the exit from the main hall, and happens to turn his head to see a pair of brown eyes watching him intently. He meets those eyes for a second, but looks away immediately.

Only one person in this entire school has eyes like those, and Draco knows very well who it is.

The Mudblood.

He reaches the entrance to the Slytherin common room. "Pure," he says to the painting, which immediately opens at the sound of the password. He steps into the room, crashing onto the silked green couch by the fire. He puts his hand to his forehead, exasperated. Ever since he had joined the Dark side, he had regretted it. He wishes he never had anything to do with the Dark Lord.

Yet, he is forced to complete the mission Voldemort had assigned him. To kill Dumbledore. He shivers at the thought, how You-Know-Who had threatened him by saying he would kill his parents and his entire family if he refused.

So he had to commit to him, to bow down to him, against his own will. Of course, he admires Voldemort the most. He doesn't know why, though.

He must kill Dumbledore. He simply must. He will get killed if he fails.

Then there was Snape. He needs to keep his too long nose out of Draco's personal business. Draco remembers that night when Snape had talked to him.

"You don't want me as your enemy, Draco," he had whispered softly.

"Your mother gave me a simple task. To protect you."

Draco had stepped away. "I don't need anyone to protect me Professor. I'm perfectly fine on my own."

"Draco, listen. Whatever you're up to, tell me. I can help you," he had grabbed his shoulder.

Draco jerked away. "If it was really important to tell you, I would. But I obviously dont."

Snape narrowed his eyes to slits. "You'll regret who you're talking to, Mr. Malfoy."

He had walked away, slamming the classroom door on the Professor's face.

Draco stares at the purple flames of the fire. He goes back to the time on the train. He had confronted Granger there, and he can't help but feel impressed. He never knew what Granger was capable of, and he has to admit he underestimates her almost all the time. She had punched him once, in the third year, but this time she had come down hard. She needs to learn to keep her big bushy mess down.

Not that her hair really is big and bushy. It's turned sleek, and shiny, pushed away from her face. But Draco still hates her. No matter what her hair looks like, she was a Mudblood, a filthy disgusting Mudblood.

He sighs and gets up, walking out the Slytherin Common Room, his wand lit in his hand. He turns a sharp left, veering himself through the narrow halls. The paintings are unsurprisingly asleep, and the walls are lit with different colors, curtains draped over the large, circular windows. He finally reaches the last passageway. He slips in and faces the Room of Requirement.

He had discovered it only a couple months ago when Voldemort had assigned him the task to fix the Vanishing Cabinet. It was a room nobody had ever heard of, a room that only appears to the people whose needs are the purest.

He closes his eyes in front of the door, thinking about what he wanted the most. Power. Succession. To make the Dark Lord proud.

Suddenly, a door appears out of no where, right in the middle of the slides open. Draco looks side to side cautiously for any followers and slips in.

He reaches the cabinet, covered in a red velvet table cover. Carefully, he pulls it off, revealing a old, ruined, stained large piece of furniture. Draco keeps a mental note to polish it sometime.

He reaches out a hand to touch the old material, but hears soft noises of breathing come from behind him. He turns his head slightly, tilting to hear it better.

There is someone behind the closet of books.

Carefully, he pulls out his wand, and instantly whips around.

"Who's there?" He points the wand towards the book shelves.

The breathing stops, and Draco can hear the shifting of hands, probably reaching for their own wand.

"Stupefy!" He yells.

There is a soft thud, telling him the intruder is unconscious. He walks to the book closet, and whispers, "Lumos." His wand lights up, hovering over the form on the ground. His eyes widen in horror at who it is.

"Granger?!" He exclaims in shock.

He bends down, scanning the unconscious form of Granger. Her eyes are closed, and the book is open on her stomach, her wand still flickering with light.

"Oh, no."

He has just stunned a girl. _That's like, against the law,_ he thought. _No matter how ugly they are._

He shakes her shoulders. "Granger? Get up!"

He sighs angrily and picks her wand up and slides his arm around her petite figure to pull her up. She is surprisingly light, and her hair is tickling his face.

"I'll have to wash my hands after touching a Mudblood like you," he mutters under his breath. He hauls her behind his shoulder and carries her to the old, red couch. He gets the idea of just dropping her on the couch, and leaving her in the cold, but he decides he isn't that mean. He gently lays her down and places her wand beside her, and turns to leave.

He remembers that she would be freezing without a robe, so he gives out an angry sigh and pulls his robe off. He covers Granger with it, so her entire body is warm. He storms away.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Hermione's Point of view

Hermione expects to feel cold, but she doesn't .

She props herself onto her elbows to find herself coated in green robes.

Slytherin robes. She remembers coming in to the Room of Requirement, to sneak in to read some of the extremely dangerous books. She had heard someone there, and then she had fallen unconscious.

Her wand is laid neatly by her side,and the robes around her definitely aren't hers.

She has a horrible suspicion to who it belongs to.

Malfoy.

She looks at the green robes. He stunned me. And then brought me to the couch. He helped me.

Why would Hermione Granger, brave Gryffindor princess, ever need help from a Slytherin? She snorts in disgust. Finally feels some pity, now, does he?

She pulls herself up, a throbbing pain in her left shoulder where the spell had hit her. She gets up on her feet, and folds the robes neatly and grabs her wand.

She looks at the watch. It's past midnight. What would Draco have been doing this late in the Room of Requirement?

She lights her wand up to guide her back to the Gryffindor Common Room. She stuffs the robes into her bag and makes a mental note to return it to its owner. She steps into the room.

Ginny is sitting by the fire, and instantly shoots up on her feet at the sight of Hermione.

"Where the hell have you been?" She asks incredulously. "I was getting nervous!"

"I'm so sorry, I kind of fell asleep while reading books in the library, and just woke up."

She feels guilty lying to her best friend, but who knows what she would do when she finds out that Malfoy stunned her?

Ginny relaxes a bit. "Okay, I thought something happened to you."

Hermione manages a smile. "Thanks, Gin. Where's Harry and Ron, anyway?"

Ginny's expression darkens. "They went to sleep after giving up on waiting for you to show up. I asked them to wait, but they insisted you were going to be fine. So I stayed."

Hermione sighs. "It's really okay, Ginny. You can go to sleep, now. it was really nice of you to stay," though she feels disappointed Ron and Harry had left.

Ginny shakes her head. "I need to tell you something, first."

She beckons her to sit beside her, and Hermione sits down, looking at her. "What is it?"

"Listen, Hermione. Ron is up to something."

She gives Ginny a puzzled look. "What do you mean?"

"He's doing something, and he is nervous that you or Harry will find out. I just know it."

"How do you know?"

Ginny sighs irritably. "He's my brother, for Merlin's sake. I know him the best."

Hermione straightens. "I'll find out, soon enough."

"Herms, the only problem is, you probably won't find out. He's really good at keeping secrets, mind you."

"Don't worry, Ginny. It's probably nothing that bad."

"Can I ask you something?"

"Uh, sure?" Hermione replies.

"Are you and Ron really 'together'?"

Hermione looks shocked. "Well, yeah. You could say that. Why?"

She shakes her head. "Nothing," she averts her eyes.

"Tell me, Ginny."

She yawns, "You know, I am pretty tired. I'm going to go the bed." She gets up from her spot, and goes up to the girls dormitory, leaving Hermione rather puzzled.

The next morning, Hermione wakes up late. She yawns and pushes her hair from her face. She gets up and hurries downstairs, with her bag. Ron and Harry are standing at the doorway, clearly waiting for Hermione.

"Finally. We're starving," Ron groans, pushing the portrait door open. "Let's head on to the Great Hall."

Harry jumps out after Ron, closely followed by Hermione. She remembers she has to return Malfoy's robes back to him, so she tries to think of an excuse to let her get to the Slytherin Common Room.

"Listen, guys, I have to get to the library to return some of my books. They're way past overdue. I'll meet you at the Hall in about fifteen minutes," she says.

Harry sighs. "Okay, I guess. We'll see there."

Ron takes Harry by the shoulder and they both leave. Hermione turns and finds her way towards Slytherin Common Room. She hasn't got a clue about how to get in, so she decides she'll just leave the robes in front of their portrait door.

She reaches the entrance and a giant seventh-year blocks her way.

"What are you doing here, Mudblood?" The boy growls.

"I-I was just-"

The Slytherin shoves her away. "Go away, Mudblood, unless you want to be beaten up."

Hermione glares at him defiantly. "No."

He narrow his eyes and wrenches her left shoulder roughly. "What did you just say?"

"I said, no."

She forces herself to stop the tears forming on the rim of her eyes. Her shoulder hurt even more. "I'm not leaving until I finish my job here."

The boy snorts. "You have no job here."

He raises a hand to slap her, but is interrupted by a cold, drawling voice.

"Let go of her, Grant."

The boy looks up, and Hermione tilts her head to see Malfoy standing only a foot away from them.

Grant lets go of her shoulder and lowers his hand. "She's trespassing, Draco."

Malfoy shrugs. "Doesn't mean you can hit a girl, does it? Even if she deserves it?"

He glares at her one last time and leaves.

Hermione wipes the unnecessary tears from her eyes. "Er, thanks."

Malfoy doesn't look at her. "What are you doing here, Granger?"

Hermione almost forgot why she is here. "I wanted to give this back to you. I guessed it was yours," she pulls the green robes from her bag and hands it to him.

He smirks and takes it from her, and for a brief moment, their hands brush past each other.

"I, er, am sorry for stunning you back at the Room of Requirement," he drawls.

She shrugs. "It's okay, I guess. Thanks for giving me your robe. I appreciate it."

"You'd better get back to your friends, or they'll start fussing over you," he says, looking at his nails.

"Oh, right," Hermione pulls her bag behind her shoulder and turns to leave.

"And I'd do something about that shoulder, if I were you," the drawling voice calls from behind her as she leaves.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Draco's Point of View

"Where were you, Draco? We were waiting for you at the Great Hall, " Pansy says as they step into the common room. "

"Draco, you have to answer me. What is wrong? Why are you so quiet?" Pansy says, grabbing Draco by the shoulder. "I'm worried about you."

Draco yanks his arm from her grasp. "I don't need anyone to worry about me, Pansy. I can do very well on my own. "

"You clearly can't."

"What makes you say that?"

"Well, first of all, you sneak off in the middle of the night to cry your heart out in your secret hideout. Second of all, you don't feel the need to bully the Mudblood anymore, so-"

"I do not cry my heart out and I do not have a secret hideout!" He exclaims angrily. "And as a matter of fact I still bully the Mudblood twenty-four seven!"

"There's something wrong with you, Draco. And you won't get away without telling me."

Draco narrows his eyes. "It's none of your business."

"It is!" Pansy cries.

"Oh, really? How?"

"Because I'm your girlfriend!"

Draco looks taken aback but quickly hides it with a snort. "Girlfriend? Since when are you my girlfriend?"

"Since now."

"I don't think so."

"You'd better think so."

"Shut up, Pansy! I told you once, I have nothing to do with you! If you don't understand that, then you're stupid!"

Pansy opens her mouth, but then closes it. "Fine," she hisses.

"Fine!"

"Fine," she sobs angrily. "The Mudblood was right about you! You are a vile, cruel, loathsome piece of crap! No wonder you've got no friends!"

She stalks away and shoves past Zabini as he comes in to the common room. "What's up with her?"

Draco shrugs angrily. "Girls! What is their problem?"'

Zabini grins. "Don't worry, mate. All of them are like that."

"Oh, I'm so worried about you, Drakie. Are you okay, Drakie? Should I polish your toenails, Drakie?" He mimicks.

Zabini laughs. "Come on. We've got to go to potions."

Draco grabs his bag. "Slughorn, isn't it?"

Blaise nods. "Heard he's an old toad."

Draco snorts. "Aren't all teachers toads?"

"They sure are."

Together they set out for potions.

* * *

"Hello, everybody! Have a seat, have a seat!" Professor Slughorn wheezes as the students pile into the dungeon.

"I'd like everyone to be separated in houses. Slytherin on the left side and Gryffindor on the right."

They do as told, Slughorn claps his hands. "All right! So I have a seating arrangement for you all, so please sit where I tell you to. Clear? "

No one answers, so he takes it as a yes.

"Okay, so on this table, I'd like Hermione Granger, Lavender Brown, Parvati Patil, Adrian Pucey, Millicent Bulstrode, and Draco Malfoy!" He taps the table to the far left. Draco groans. "Oh, no," he mutters to Zabini as he walks to the table and plops down in the seat. Adrian and Millicent sits beside him, and across from him is- Granger.

Granger purposefully doesn't make eye contact with him, and neither does Draco. He remembers last night, when Granger had given Draco his robes back, and how he had told Grant off. He regrets it.

When everyone is seated, Slughorn waddles to the front of the room. "Okay,so we are going to start with a simple potion. The Felix Felicis! Anyone know what it does?"

Granger's hand shoots up into the air.

"Yes, dear?"

"It's a luck potion. It brings really good luck to the drinker for a day," she recites.

Draco grins cruelly and leans over. "You know, Granger, maybe you can drink that stuff and get a proper haircut, or a dentist appointment, maybe," he mocks.

"Maybe you can get a tan at the beach, if that's even possible, under your circumstances,'" she retorts.

Draco opens his mouth to spit another insult, but Slughorn appears behind him, placing a hand on Draco's shoulder. "Mr. Malfoy, why don't you get some potion books for everyone at your table? That would be really helpful to everyone, eh, sonny?"

Draco gets up awkwardly. "Er,yes professor."

Granger smirks at him before he turns. He reaches the cupboard and yanks out six worn-out textbooks and throws them at the table.

Slughorn wheezes again."Now, boy. Is that how we treat school property? Pick them up and hand them nicely to each student."

Draco tries not to throw the books at the professor's face. He picks them up and hands them to each person at the table. Draco gives Granger the last, ripped up one, and she snatches it from his hands angrily. He grins ferociously.

Granger ignores him and opens her textbook.

"So, you all will separate in groups of two within your tables. Together, you will create a cauldron of Felix Felicis! Begin!"

Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil instantly pair up. Millicent and Adrian both grab each others arms, verifying that Draco is left with Granger.

Granger groans.

Draco smirks. "Come on, Granger. You get to be with the Slytherin Prince! Consider yourself lucky."

She snorts aggressively. "Lucky to be working with a rat?"

"You're the rat here, Granger."

"Am I really? For a moment I thought you were talking about yourself."

"Shut up, Granger."

"You first, Malfoy."

"No thanks."

She glares at him.

Draco smiles. "See? I always get what I want," he lays back in his chair with his arms on his head.

"So?" She says.

"So what?"

"Aren't you going to help me brew the potion?"

Draco laughs. "Of course! Why don't I help you by not doing anything?"

"This isn't funny, Malfoy."

"That's why no ones laughing."

"Fine! If you're just going to sit there, then I will too!"

He shrugs. "I'm totally fine with that."

Granger sits there for a while, but gives up soon. "You are so pathetic!" She brings the materials from beneath the table. "I guess I'll have to do everything since you're going to be a lazy cockroach, right?"

"See? I always get what I want," he repeats coolly.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Hermione's Point of View

Hermione is furious.

She hates Draco Malfoy more than vomit flavored jelly beans.

She pushes the fireworms toward Malfoy. "Cut them up in four equal parts and put them in the cauldron."

He raises an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"

"What?"

"You can't tell me what to do."

"I most certainly can and I just did."

"Well, you're wrong," he says, pushing the worms back to Hermione. "If you think you're better than me, you're as stupid as you look."

"I don't think so. I know so," she shoves them in his face, surprising him. He topples backwards in his chair and falls off with the worms squirming around on his chest.

Hermione stifles a laugh. "Oops. You slipped."

"Get these bloody worms off me, Granger!"

She laughs again and bends down next to Malfoy. She places the back of her hands beneath the worms and on his chest. She hopes he doesn't notice her face reddening as the she cups the worms in her hands and removes her hands from his shirt. She stands up and places the worms on the table. She is about to sit down, but remembers that Malfoy is still on the floor. She comes around the chair and reaches out a hand to help him up.

Hesitantly, Malfoy takes it and she yanks him off the ground. "You're still cutting the fireworms, you know," she adds.

He sighs angrily. "Fine," he plops down on the chair. "Give me the bloody knife."

She gives him the knife. "Don't cut the heads off."

"You think I will?"

"You never know."

He cuts one worm very badly and out of shape. She puts a hand on her forehead. "Malfoy, didn't I say equally?"

"Did you? Don't seem to remember," he taps his chin dramatically.

She rolls her eyes. "Watch."

She takes the knife from his hand and separates one worm from the others. She puts a finger on its tail and slices its body in half. Then, she slices the halves into smaller halves. "There. Equal."

He quirks an eyebrow. "I got this," he leans over and pulls another worm out. He places the knife at the midsection of the worm. "Is that half?" he asks, looking at her.

"Yes."

He pushes the knife through, and Hermione can feel him breathing on her neck, shallow and warm. Not something you'd expect from a Malfoy.

He finishes the worm, and shows it to her proudly. "Look, Granny Granger, I did it!"

Hermione laughs at his imitation. This is certainly not the Malfoy she knows. "Great, now finish the other ones."

Later in the evening, Hermione comes back to the common room after Potions with Harry and Ron.

Ron is having a major laughing fit about what happened to Malfoy during Potions.

"The way you shoved the worms in his face! Brilliant!"

Hermione sighs, "Yes, Ronald. You've repeated that sentence eight times."

"Still," he laughs again. "Amazing!"

Harry smiles. "It was pretty funny.

"Very funny," Hermione mutters disapprovingly.

She turns to them both. "Look, guys,I've got loads of homework from Professor Vector all due tomorrow, so-I need to start working."

"Right," Ron suppresses another laugh. "You also need to finish my essay on grindylows, and my question paper on levitating charms."

Hermione glares at him. "I'm not doing any of your homework until you behave yourself, and until I've finished my homework first."

"Oh come on, Hermione-"

"No, I really need to finish my Arithmancy homework, and my own twelve-foot essay on grindylows," she stalks off into her dormitory.

She sits at her bed with her parchment and ink, trying to think about what thirty uses of grindylows there were, and…

Her thoughts drift to something else. Someone else, actually.

She remembers the warm heartbeat under that pale skin. She didn't even know he had a heart. She didn't even know he had a smile.

The Draco Malfoy that she knows is definitely not the one she was talking to at Potions.

The Draco Malfoy she knows for almost six years is the one who tortures her, taunts her, does all those horrible things to her.

She tries to picture Malfoy happy again. A big warm smile he had had on his face when he had shown Hermione the worms he had cut. But it had instantly disappeared in less than a second.

She misses that smile.

She doesn't want to admit it, but his smile comforted her, had shown her that behind that cruel and vile face, behind his perfection and aggression, lay a heart. Not a cold, evil heart. A real heart. A golden heart.

Hopefully.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Draco's Point of View

Draco is tired.

He has been piled with heaps of homework and feels devastated.

He sighs and stuffs his head into his pillow, trying to diminish all the frustration-he doesn't know where the frustration is coming from.

He is scared.

He does not know what is wrong with him.

Ever since he came back from Potions, he felt nervous. Angry. Resentful.

Once again, he does not know what it's coming from.

He thinks about Granger, and her eyes. They are a mix of chocolate brown and golden, a mix that seemed beautiful to Draco.

And hideous at the same time.

He wishes he can delete his history. To turn over a new leaf. To fix everything that had gone wrong. To show the world that he was worthwhile.

He imagines what would happen if he and Potter had become friends. If Potter had shaken his hand when he was extending his hand of friendship.

Potter had rejected it, which was absolutely fine with Draco, for soon he had realized that if he had been friends with him, Draco would be in big trouble with his father, going around making friends with their number one enemy.

He thinks about what good things would've happened. He wouldn't be Hogwart's bad boy bully. He would be friends with Granger, which he wasn't sure if that is a good thing or a bad thing.

His head tells him its a bad thing, his heart says its a good thing. He isn't sure which one to listen to.

His father would be furious if he found out that Draco had been on talking terms with Granger. He would nearly kill him, not to mention hismother.

Draco sighs again and brings head up from the pillow. He gets up and snatches his homework up and heads to the library.

As he enters the library,Madam Pince giving him her usual suspicious glare.

He rolls his eyes. "Just homework."

He slips into the corridor of books in the back, his usual spot.

Today he sees it is occupied by someone else.

He groans. Not her, He thinks miserably.

"What are you doing here?"

Granger yelps in surprise,nearly falling off the table, her ink quill leaving a giant abstract mark on her long piece of parchment.

"Malfoy! Next time you decide to sneak up on me like that,please give me a heads up!"

"Net time you decide to invade my privacy, give me a fair warning."

"Your privacy?"

"No, my privacy."

"No! I meant your privacy, as in, your privacy!"

"Oh, so you mean your privacy as in, my privacy, not your-"

Granger puts a hand to her forehead. "Forget it! The point is, you just ruined my twelve-foot essay, and I only had one inch left!"

"Oh, I am so sorry, Granger! Is there anything I can do to help?" He says a little bit too dramatically.

"Yes," she says through gritted teeth. "Leave."

"Excuse me?" He raises an eyebrow.

"This is my spot, Granger. Always been my spot."

"There's nobody's spot here, Malfoy. It's a library."

"So?"

"So, I can sit wherever I want."

"Fine! Then I'll sit here, too, to torture you even more!"

"I doubt I'd be affected."

"We'll see."

He pulls a chair only a few feet away from her, and plops down in it to work on his homework.

They sit quietly for a few moments, until Granger slams her hand in frustration. "Will you stop tapping your foot?"

"Why?"

"It's hard for me to concentrate."

"I thought you'd be unaffected."

"Malfoy! Please. Stop. I have to redo my entire essay just because of you."

He looks at her with mock consideration. "Granger, does it look like I care?"

She sighs angrily and bends back into her work.

He does the same, filling in the questions about monkswood and wolfsbane.

He gets stuck on a question, and soon gets very angry at it. "What is wrong with these questions? I'm not Merlin!"

Granger snorts. "No. Definitely not Merlin. No beard, remember?"

"What's the question?" She asks.

"What is the main difference between monkswood and wolfsbane?"

"Potions? That was due weeks ago."

"I'm not all up-tight like you are though."

She straightens. "I am not uptight."

"Sure. Will you help me or not?"

She crosses her arms. "Well, I'm not going to give you a straight answer. Its in the Advanced Potion-Making textbook on page 475."

He gapes at her. "How do you know that?"

She shrugs. "Got it memorized. I'll show you the book," she gets up from the table and Draco follows her to the other empty corridor in the Potions section. She scans the row of books and finally pulls out a large, green book. "Here. It's pretty easy to read, and you'll probably find it-"

She trips from her pile of books she is standing on, slipping on her robe. Without thinking, Draco grabs her waist to steady her,and she clutches his shoulders to balance herself. He finds himself face-to-face with her.

He looks at her. Her golden-brown eyes stare into his gray ones, and Draco feels as if he might just melt inside them. He quickly dismisses the thought.

Granger removes her hands awkwardly. "Er, thanks."

He tries to make the distance between them a little more. "Welcome," he mutters. "Thanks for the book."

"No problem."

"Better get going then."

"Yeah. Getting late," she says grabbing her bag.

"Sorry about messing your essay up," he mumbles.

"Oh,no it's fine. I'll finish it tomorrow when I get the chance."

As she heads out the door, Draco calls back reluctantly.

"Granger."

She looks back. "Yes?"

"Bye," he says lamely.

"Um, bye?"

"Okay." He turns away,face red as he hears the library door close.

Bloody idiot! He thinks to himself. Bye? Seriously?

Madam Pince clears her throat. "Ahem. We are closing in five seconds."

"Yes, Yes. I'm leaving."

He slams the door behind him, very unsatisfied with himself.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Hermione's Point of View

Hermione enters the Gryffindor Common Room to see everyone in a large circle, cheering and whooping around one particular someone.

She pushes through the large crowd and finally reaches the center to find Ron, standing in the middle, a wide grin across his face as he holds the glistening gold trophy.

She mutters to Harry, "When were the finals?"

"Just finished half an hour ago. Werent you there?"

She shakes her head. "Missed it. Ron won!"

He smiles. "Yep."

She notices him blushing as he casts continuous glances over at Ginny, who is standing in the corner with her friends, talking and giggling.

Hermione gives him a small punch in the arm. "Harry. Ginny's still with Dean, you know."

Harry tries to put on a puzzled expression at first, but he gives up anyway. "Nope. Broke up before the match."

"What happened?"

He shrugs."Dunno."

Hermione tries to hide her smile. "Why don't you tell her?"

"What? And get kicked in the arse? No way!"

She laughs and a sudden motion of pink dashes to Ron in the center. She throws her hands around his neck and crushes his mouth against hers, and he responds quite enthusiastically.

Hermione just stands there in shock for a few moments, her eyes wide open in surprise to take in what just happened.

Ginny jumps up from her seat in the corner, alert of Hermione. Hermione turns to look at her, and she finally understands what she had meant.

Don't want me to give away your little secret, do you? Draco had taunted Ron back on the train.

He's up to something, Ginny had warned her.

Lavender's so annoying, Ron had said in their fifth year.

Annoying? She thinks angrily.

She almost bursts into tears at the sight of them.

Harry is up in the front, clapping with everyone else. He probably had known before, too.

Leaving Hermione alone.

She shoves her way out of the crowd and collapses into an empty classroom. She instantly breaks down, sliding down the wall, covering her face with her knees. She cries to her heart content, her face getting sticky with tears.

"Granger?"

Hermione peeks up from her knees to see a tall, blonde boy standing at the doorway.

She stuffs her face back into her knees, not wanting to fight with him right now.

"Granger, are you all right?"

"Sure."

"No kidding. What's wrong?"

"Nothing. "

"Granger, tell me."

She brings her head up to see Draco Malfoy's pale face looking down at her,,scanning her tear-soaked face.

"You've found out , already, haven't you?"

Hermione looks at him. "What?"

He smirks. "About Weasel, of course."

She narrows her eyes and gets up to her feet. "You knew!"

"Duh."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because, I forgot."

"What do you mean you forgot? That's not something you can easily forget,"she says angrily.

"I just did,okay? I saw Weasel with the little pig Brown in Diagon Alley, in an empty tea shop. They were practically eating each other's faces off."

Hermione bites her lip. "I hate him. That stupid, arrogant, cheater!"

Malfoy shrugs. "I thought you wouldn't take it that harshly if I told you, and you already liked somebody else, so-"

What did that mean? She thinks . She doesn't really have time to process what he is saying.

She bursts into tears again, her voice cracking with sobs. "I wish-I wish-I wish I never even existed! This whole thing, this chaos, none of it would've happened if I wasn't even a witch. If I was a regular, dirty Muggle…" She slides back down the wall.

Malfoy blinks and sits beside her. "Well, you've got to think about others, too, you know. Imagine what Potter and Weasley would do without you. They'd probably kill themselves after they fail in their lives. Imagine what the Weaslette would do without you. She'll be lonely forever without you to be friends with her. Imagine what…"

His voice falters and Hermione looks sideways at him. She realizes that his eyes were never really black. His eyes are like little pools of bright silver, twinking every time the moon reflects upon them. Simply amazing.

Then he does something she would never think he would do.

He slides his arm around her shoulders, her head resting against his arm. She places her head on his shoulder, and he rocks them back and forth.

"You know, every time your boyfriends leave you, you can always come to me for comfort."

She laughs weakly. "I sure will."

They sit there for a bit, just staring at the wall in front of them.

Finally, Hermione breaks the silence. "That time on the train," she says thoughtfully.

"Someone helped me up after a guy knocked me down. That someone was you, wasn't it?"

He smiles. "I don't know. If you say so."

"Malfoy?"

"You can call me Draco."

"Draco," she tastes the words. "Wow, feels weird when I say your first name."

"Rewind and try again."

She laughs. "Okay. Draco?"

"Yes, Hermione?"

"I like you better this way."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, I like your nice, warm, happy face better than your annoying, mean, taunting face."

He tries to look hurt. "Annoying?"

"At times."

"Well. I think I like being like this more often."

"Just hearing that makes me feel better."

"Good."

Draco gets up and extends a hand. "Come on. It's really dark. You need some sleep."

"As do you," she takes it and he pulls her up, bringing her only inches from his face. She can feel him breathing on her face.

He puts a strand of her hair behind her ear. "Goodnight, Hermione."

She squeezes his hand. "Thank you, Draco. Goodnight."

She lets go of his hand and leaves the classroom reluctantly, already missing having his arms around her.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8: Draco's Point of View

Draco feels sick with himself.

He had came back to the Slytherin Common Room after his abrupt meeting, nearly puking on the way in.

He doesn't know what he was thinking. He's supposed to despise Granger, not pity her and comfort her. He's supposed to perfect.

Perfectly perfect.

I can't be falling for a Mudblood. Impossible. Terrifying,

He thinks.

Yet it is true.

He gives out an angry exclamation and nearly slams into the wall.

No, it is not true, his mind thinks. I hate her.

Do I? His heart thinks.

Yes! She's a filthy, disgusting Mudblood. She will never have anything to do with me, his mind argues dumbly.

But you care for her! You comforted her! She can help you, his heart contradicts.

"No one can help me, so shut up!" He yells out loud, receiving several glares at his direction.

"Sorry ," he mutters, walking up to his dormitory.

He flops down on his bed, pushing the crumpled pieces of paper off carelessly. He had spent hours and hours trying to finish the essay, but soon he gave up.

"Draco? There you are. I've got to ask you something,"

Blaise appears in front of his bed.

"Uh huh."

"So-have you become a death eater yet?"

Draco instantly sits up. "What kind of question is that?"

"I mean, I've got it too," he rolls up his left sleeve revealing the tattoo. He grins proudly. "Just got it few days ago, during the Hogsmeade weekend."

Draco stares at it, horrified, remembering his own tattoo burned into his skin, before first term had started.

"Listen, Draco. Whatever you're up to, I want to help."

Draco shakes his head violently. "No. The Dark Lord gave this task to me, and me alone."

"But-"

"No," he repeats through gritted teeth. "I've got this on my own."

For a moment it looks like he's going to lunge at him, but he doesn't.

He shrugs. "Okay," he walks out the dormitory.

Now, after telling his best friend off, Draco feels even more sick inside.

"Oh God," he whispers to the ceiling, "When is this all going to end?"

The next morning, Draco is late for breakfast. He did not catch a bit of sleep the night before due to the nightmares and non-stop screaming and wailing going on in his mind.

He walks into the Great Hall, sulkily. He doesn't walk with his usual confident, proud stride though.

He plops into a seat beside Pansy. She looks up in shock, but quickly turns into anger and moves to a seat several feet away. Draco notices Blaise not making eye contact with him, or Crabbe staring at him as if he had grown three heads.

He sighs and puts a hand to his chin, staring at his food.

"Can you believe it?" Some annoying little Ravenclaw bickers to his friend in front of Draco. "Three more weeks, and first term is over! We'll be halfway through the year!"

Draco freezes as he listens to their conversation.

Three more weeks, term is over?

Can't be. Too soon.

He gets up from the table hurriedly and several people look up from the table.

"Aren't you going to eat?" Goyle says through a mouth stuffed with pie.

"No," he mutters. "No time."

He sprints out the Great Hall.

Three weeks. Three weeks. Got to kill him in three weeks. Fix the bloody cabinet in three weeks. Bring the Death Eaters in within three weeks, he thinks.

He rushes to the third corridor and runs down the hallway, turning at the giant mural.

He closes his eyes, standing in front of the wall.

It opens.

He slips in and reaches the large but vacant bathroom.

He faces the mirror, staring at himself.

He dabs the cold tap water at his face.

He cannot stop the tears from tearing down his cheeks.

Draco Malfoy is crying.

He stands there, his palms pressed against the basin, the tears dripping off his chin.

Until he sees someone in the mirror.

"Draco?"

He snaps his head around to see her.

Her.

He doesn't respond. She walks toward him and touches his shoulder lightly.

"What happened?"

He jerks away from her reach. "Don't touch me. I don't deserve your pity."

She ignores this and takes him by the shoulders so she can see him properly.

"Draco, you look so tired. Did you sleep?"

Her golden eyes twinkle with worry as they meet his silvery ones.

"No, I'm not tired," he says after a long time.

He adds, "I'm scared."


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9: Hermione's Point of View

Hermione blinks.

"Whatever for?" She says quietly, careful not to anger him.

"Three weeks. Three weeks," he keeps saying.

"Three weeks until what?"

He slams his hand on the basin, making Hermione jump. "You won't understand .It'll only make things worse!" He sobs.

"Draco, you can tell me anything. I can help you."

He puts a hand to his forehead. "Don't you see? I can't talk to you anymore. What would your friends and family say? What would my friends and family say?"

"What would they say to what? Me talking to you is not exactly against the law."

He grits his teeth. "Why are you being so nice to me? I only make your life worse by torturing you and taunting you! Why don't you hate me?"

"Why don't you hate me? The past few days, you showed me a different side of you. One that I never though even existed. Why was it there? Why do you talk to me? I'm a Mudblood! I am worthless! Why haven't you killed me yet?" She spits the words out like venom.

He stares at her. "Why would I ever want to kill you?" He whispers.

"Oh, let me think. See, I'm a Mudblood, I'm a Gryffindor, I'm Harry Potter's best friend, and I am a girl," she counts them off on her fingertips.

"Just because you're a girl-"

"Stop it, Malfoy!" She nearly shouts, her eyes stinging. "For a moment I thought that you had changed. That you were different than what I thought you were before. I thought we could be friends. But I was clearly wrong. You will never care."

She turns to leave, but Draco grabs her wrist. She whirls around, facing him.

"Let go of me, Malfoy!"

"Wait," he pleads. "Please. I-I need you."

Hermione looks at him properly for the first time.

His eyes have dark circles around them, his hair unruly, his lips parched.

His face has become more angular, and it seems he has lost a lot of weight. His blond hair almost looks gray.

"Look, I know something is wrong, Draco. You can decide if you want to tell me or not. I'm fine either way," though she means it as giving him not much of a choice.

Draco wipes his eyes slowly with his sleeve. He still has hold of her wrist, and she makes no move to jerk away.

She reaches out a hand to touch his face, and traces his cheekbone with her thumb.

"What happened to you?" She asks, choking back a sob.

He pulls away a little and shoves his left sleeve up to the end of his forearm.

"This is what happened."

She stifles a small whimper as he reveals his Dark Mark. A large skull with a snake protruding from its mouth burned into his soft skin. There is a dark glow surrounding it, endarkening the outline.

"I-"

"Don't!" He holds out a hand in a stopping motion.

"Draco, listen to me," she grabs his arm, facing him.

"You don't have to do this. You have a choice."

"What do you mean I have a choice?" He bellows.

Hermione goes silent.

"Hermione," he sobs. "He chose me. If I don't do this, he'll kill me. He'll kill my family. Everyone I love. I don't have a choice," he closes his eyes in misery.

"I can help you," she says softly.

"You can't! You won't."

"Why?"

"Because it's dangerous," he pushes his hair away from his face.

"Who says I can't handle dangerous things? And besides-what is it you have to do anyways?"

He takes a deep breath. "I have to-kill Dumbledore."

Hermione's throat tightens. _Kill Dumbledore?_

"Wha-? How in the world are you going to manage this without help?"

"I have to bring Death Eaters inside the castle."

She gasps. "You can't. There are millions of unprotected students there, the castle, the staff-" Her voice trails into silence.

"Don't you think I've gone through this before? Don't you think I've worried enough about this? I've spent half my time here in the Room of Requirement trying to fix the Vanishing Cabinet. The fact that I've only got three weeks-"

"Vanishing Cabinet?" She inquires.

"There's one here and one in Borgin & Burkes. They transport things from one place to another."

"So,you mean, the Death Eaters enter the cabinet over there, and they appear over here?"

He nods reluctantly. "The only problem is, this one's broken. I have to fix it."

Hermione stares at him, open mouthed. The way he had thought all this out, planned it perfectly, prepared for anything, and now his plan was going to be destroyed? No matter who it was, Hermione isn't going to let that happen.

"Draco, this is risky," she says, chewing her lip. she cannot believe she is helping her best friends mortal enemy.

"You don't have to be part of this at all. You don't have to help me," he looks away. "As a matter of fact, You're not going to help me."

She crosses her arms. "Why would that be?"

"Because you're a Mud-a muggleborn. I can't risk the Death Eaters seeing you and trying to hurt you."

"So? What does it matter to you that I'm hurt?"

Draco opens his mouth, but closes it again. "You caught me there," he mutters.

"Thought so," she smirks. "I will help you."

"Why?"

"Because you're my friend."

"Hermione, you're best friends with Harry Potter. Your complete reputation would be ruined if people found out you helped a Death Eater."

A Death Eater. He called himself a death eater.

"Doesn't matter. And besides," she pats his shoulder. "I don't really have much of a reputation."

"Oh, sure you do. You're the smartest person in the school."

Hermione manages a small smile. "Thanks, Draco."

She gazes at him, indulged in his pure, silver eyes. There are no trace of tears anymore, and his face looks full of life again.

Carefully, she wraps her arms around his neck, and hugs him. The warmth of him, comforts Hermione. He smells like a mix of strawberries and cream.

He hugs her back and as Hermione rests her head on his chest, she can feel the something beneath, humming with warmth, beating with energy.

A heart.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10: Draco's Point of View

Draco finally releases her from their embrace, red in the face.

Her arms slip down to his forearms, refusing to let go. "You have to let me help you."

"No."

"Please," she pleads hopelessly.

"No! You're not going to even take a step out of your dormitory. You won't."

"Why?"

He sighs. "You give me no choice but to answer this. Because I care about you."

Hermione's mouth nearly falls to the floor. "But I care about you too. And I don't want you to get hurt."

"You're not the one worrying about me getting hurt. It's the opposite. The Death Eaters will try to hurt you more than me. Besides, you're one of Dumbledore's best students. what would he say if he saw you there?"

"Dumbledore may hate me then. But he would die. Nobody would know."

Draco stares at her. "You're saying it as if you're supporting me."

"Draco, I am supporting you. Don't you think I would've turned on you if I wasn't?"

"Wouldn't I think you'd turn on me instead of supporting me?"

She sighs. "Don't answer a question with a question."

"I will answer a question with a question if it's necessary."

"The point is, I am going to help you no matter what you say."

"Why?"

"For heaven's sake, Draco! I've probably repeated myself over eight times. I'm not doing this because I want to. I'm doing this for you."

Draco looks at her into the eyes. "You sure?"

She nods. "Because I love you."

She turns beet red at the words. Draco takes a long time to process the words that just tumbled out of Hermione Granger's mouth.

_She loves me. She loves Draco Malfoy._

He gazes at her for a long time, and finally replies. "I love you, too."

_I love her. I love Hermione Granger._

She manages a small smile and Draco spots a tear glistening down her cheek. He leans closer and brushes it away with his finger.

He cups her face gently, pushing away the strands of hair loose behind her ear.

She leans closer, close enough for their foreheads to be touching.

He looks at her, her soft, golden-brown eyes, rich as melting chocolate. Her nose, perfect size, not too long, not too short. Her lips, pink and full. Together these things make Hermione Granger.

The Hermione that Draco is in love with.

He tilts his head and very softly, brushes his lips against hers. She closes her eyes, and this time she leans in, touching her lips to his. Very delicate, very gentle feeling. A beautiful sensation. The arms around Draco's neck tighten, and his hands fall from her midsection to her waist. She tastes like lemon and vanilla. He holds the kiss for a few minutes, and finally she pulls away.

"Did-Did that really just happen?" She whispers.

"I dunno, did it happen?"

"Again, you answered a question with a question."

"It happened if you wanted it to happen. Did you?"

"Well, yes."

"Then it did happen. For me, it did."

"I can't believe it, though, Draco," Hermione murmurs, touching her forehead to his. "Just a few days ago, I hated you. Now, I love you. It's all so weird and confusing."

Draco grins. "Life is confusing."

"I wouldn't quite agree with that. I'd say love is confusing. Don't you think?"

Draco smiles, brushing his lips against her cheek. "You'll have a lot to explain to your friends."

Hermione glares at him. "As do you."

"Not necessarily. I'll just keep it a secret."

"So will I, then," she says. "Harry is too obsessed with mooning over Ginny to worry about me, and Ron is spending his entire life snogging Lavender, so I guess I'm free."

"Okay. Meet me here tomorrow."

"What time?"

"Same time, same place during free period."

"Okay. I'll try," she says.

Draco can't help but smile.

"What?" She asks quizzically.

"Nothing. Just that this somehow feels like one of those old dramatic movies when the boy and the girl get separated because they come from different families and then they both start meeting each other in secret, you know, laying on the grass watching the stars, go on random adventures, run away from school-"

Hermione stops him, smiling."I get your point."

Hermione stops smiling, and her expression changes. Something that Draco can't read.

"I'm sorry," he mutters. "Shouldn't have brought that up-"

"No, no it's fine. It'd just that are we like that? Are we detached from each other because of where we come from?"

"We can be," he says. "But it's your decision that gets taken into account. If we want to be together, we will. If we don't, well- you know."

Draco looks at her. Her wavy hair is stuck to her face with tears. Her eyes have dark circles around them,just as he had. She looks exhausted.

"Hermione," he says after their awkward silence. "You should get some sleep. I'll see you tomorrow."

Hermione tries to protest, but soon realizes it is for her own good. "Okay. Bye."

"Bye."

She turns around, and stops at the door. "Draco?"

"Yes?"

"I just wanted you to know, you're not alone. No matter where you are, I'll be with you."

"Always?"

"Always," she gives him one last beautiful smile, and leaves, shutting the door silently behind her.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11: Hermione's Point of View

"In the name of Merlin, Hermione! Next time you decide to sneak off like that,please notify me! Do you not know how worried I was?" Ginny exclaims as Hermione enters the common room.

"Yes,yes, I'm sorry, it was urgent-"

"What was so urgent you couldn't tell me before?" She demands.

Hermione looks at her best friend. Should she tell her? Should she confess?

After all, Ginny is the only person left to confess to.

Hermione sighs. "Fine. I'll tell you everything once you calm down."

She plops down beside her. "So," she starts nervously.

"Go on."

"I-I was at the breakfast hall this morning."

"No. I want it from the beginning."

"Beginning of what?" Hermione asks, confused.

"Of whatever it is you are hiding."

"Oh."

She takes a deep breath. "I had snuck into the Room of Requirement for some late-night reading. I thought I was alone, but surprisingly, I wasn't. He thought I was an intruder, so he stunned me just before I was about to stun him."

Ginny raises her eyebrows.

"I fell unconscious until the next morning. I found myself in Slytherin robes on a couch in the Room."

Ginny's expression changes. "Malfoy," she says, with threatening malice.

"Wait. I figured the same and after I came back, I decided to return his robes, or it'd be pretty awkward if you or the others find Slytherin robes in my dormitory. I was on my way to the Slytherin common room when some bully Slytherin blocked my way and was about to hurt me when Draco stopped him and told him to leave. I thanked him and gave his robes back."

"And then?"

Hermione sighs. "That scene was over. Next day during Potions, Draco and I were paired together. He taunted me, and he taunted me back, the usual. Until I shoved the worms into his face and he fell,with the worms on him. I helped him after I'd finished laughing. He laughed too, and suddenly he started acting all nice and happy. I was surprised."

But Ginny is already doubling over and laughing. "He fell? You should've taken pictures-"

"Ask Ronald for a memoir," she snaps irritably.

Ginny falls silent and clears her throat. "Continue."

"After that I started wondering if Draco was always mean,or if he just did it to show people he could keep his cool. Couldn't stop thinking about it. We had abrupt random meetings afterward; all of them turned out to be really awkward. I had come to the feeling that we could become friends."

"Did you? Become friends?"

"Well, I dunno, really. This morning at the Breakfast hall he just randomly sprinted out go the hall, so I followed him. It turned out he was going to the Room of Requirement. I found him there, cr-"

Hermione's voice falters.

"What? What was he doing in there?"

"He was crying."

"Crying? You've go to be kidding me. Draco Malfoy doesn't know how to cry."

"He was. A lot. I asked him what was wrong and he wouldn't tell me. I told him I could help him, but he kept saying it was too dangerous. I tried to comfort him,but he kept sobbing. I couldn't really do anything."

Ginny looks at her thoughtfully. "Why was he crying? There must be some reason."

Hermione shrugs. "At first I kept arguing until he finally gave in. I was horrified when he told me about it, but I told him I would help him."

"So you're helping him? Draco Malfoy? The one you hate?"

"Oh, Ginny! Don't you see? I have to. I can't just leave him to deal with it himself. He's helpless."

"It's his problem, not yours."

"If it's his problem, it's my problem, too."

"Why?"

"Ginny, these past few days, we've been more than just I found out about Ron and Lavender, he found me and comforted me. I talked to him that night I found him lurking in the library. We're friends."

"What if he's using you? What if he's just being nice to you so he can get to Harry through you for Yo-Know-Who? You don't know anything about him! Nobody does!" Ginny exclaims.

"I know enough about him to be able to tell if he's lying or not. I him enough to ow that Draco Malfoy has a heart."

Ginny snorts aggressively. "A fake heart."

"I bet you wouldn't say that after I've finished."

"Shoot then," Ginny folds her arms.

"He kissed me."

Ginny nearly screams."WHAT DID YOU SAY?"

"He kissed me on the lips. And I kissed him back," Hermione says, smirking.

"I can't believe you, Hermione. You of all people ought to understand-"

"Oh, shut up. Wouldn't you have kissed Harry if you had the chance."

"A matter of fact, I already have."

"You have?" Hermione says, astonished. How much had she missed these past days?

"Yes. Yesterday. Nevertheless, you wouldn't know, since you're too busy thinking about snogging the Slytherin pureblood Prince to talk to your best friend."

Hermione stares at her, shocked. "How could you say that?"

"I can say that because it's true," Ginny says angrily.

"Ginny! We both know that you and Harry and Ron-well maybe not Ron at this moment-are way more important to me than Draco! You guys are everything to me, and now that I've already lost Ronald to a pig, you leaving will just make it worse."

"Hermione, you've been lost in your own little world these days. Everytime I talk to you, you're daydreaming. You sneak off in the middle of the night to meet a Slytherin. How worse can I feel? I try to talk to you about Harry, but you don't seem to give a crap. Now that I know, you're always thinking about him."

"By the name of Merlin, I thought you would understand. I thought you would help me if I told you. I thought you were my best friend. But clearly you're not. I have nobody. Ron's left me, Harry doesn't even talk to me anymore , and you don't understand me. Nothing."

"Didn't you think they ignore you for a reason? They know something is wrong with you. You've been keeping your distance from them, so they will too."

She gets up abruptly and storms away, leaving Hermione horrified.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12: Draco's Point of View

Draco is nervous.

He's supposed to meet Hermione after dinner in the Room of Requirement.

She will help me, he thinks. Help. The one thing I have needed since the beginning of term.

He shuts the boys' dormitory room and sits beside the Slytherin fire. He puts his chin in his hand and stares into the flames.

The flames are so bright, almost looking gold. There is a piece of paper burning within the flames, and Draco's curiosity sparks instantly.

He points his wand at it. "Aguamenti." Water shoots into the flame, darkening the room.

Carefully he pulls out the burned piece of parchment and waves his wand at it and the flames reappear.

He unfolds it and messy, sloppy handwriting appears. It is eligible for Draco to read.

_Dear Diary,_

_I don't know what to do. Draco looks so ill and I'm worried for him. He hasn't gotten any sleep. I keep asking him what is wrong, but he doesn't respond. He acts like I'm never there, which sickens me. Today, I tried to tell him my feelings for him, but he was furious and turned his back on me. He told me I was nosy and worthless. Am I? I don't know._

_Now I know why so many people hate him. He's cruel and vile. Nobody wants to be his friend because they are scared of him. He's a bully, and he's self-centered and grumpy. No wonder Granger and Weasley and Potter hate him. I hate him, too._

_Yours truly,_

_Pansy_

Draco looks up from the paper, surprised. "Pansy? Oh come on, that was ages ago-" he mutters to himself.

When Draco was in first year, he had had a crush on Pansy. She was nice and pretty, but soon Draco realized she was out of his league. She grew annoying over the years, until that night when Draco had snapped at her and she ran away, crying. Like a baby. Who writes in a diary.

But Draco thinks about what else was in the letter. Cruel and vile. People are scared of him. Self-centered and grumpy.

Am I like that? He says to himself.

He agrees, he is self-centered and whatever Pansy said. But can he change that? Can he change who he is?

He wishes, though. He doesn't think it's possible. Ever.

But someone can help me, he thinks.

Only one person is capable of changing Draco. And that's her.

Hermione Granger.

"Oh, there you are, Draco, I thought you'd forgotten," Hermione is waiting for him in the vacant Room of Requirement. Hermione helps him through the tiny door. He stumbles out to see a large, empty room. "Woah," Draco says, astonished. "What did you do?" The once messy place with junk and grease has now transformed into a neat room, the books neatly piled on the shelves, the Cabinet up in the left corner, gleaming in the dark. "You polished it!"

Hermione blushes. "The place was a huge mess, and it was disturbing me so I just fixed it up a little."

"All by yourself?"

"With my wand."

"Brilliant, Hermione."

"Thanks. So I've figured out a way to mend the cabinet."

"Great. How?" Draco asks her sitting on the old couch.

"There's a potion ingredient I had stumbled upon a few days ago while I was reading. It's called cracewood. It's supposed to give you whatever you want the most, and in your case it''s fixing this thing."

"So you mean like a genie."

"Not exactly. the cracewood only gives you one chance, and it's something you won't ever be able to regret or take back."

Draco bites his lip. "Did you try using a healing or mending charm?"

Hermione nods. "Everything I could think of. Nothing seems to work on it."

"So this cracewood is our only hope."

"I think it is," she says.

"Well, it's easy. We just sneak into Slughorn's private cupboards and take it."

"Not what you'd call easy. I already looked there. It's not here. It's-"

"Where is it, then?" Draco asks nervously.

"In the Forbidden Forest."

Draco gapes at her. "You can't possibly be thinking we're going in there. It's dangerous. There are werewolves and vampires and centaurs."

"You sound scared, Malfoy."

"What? Of course not!" He stutters.

"Then we're going. Tomorrow night, meet me behind Hagrid's cabin."

"Wait! We haven't even planned this out yet, let alone get prepared. What if we run into something, or if we get eaten by giants, or if our blood gets drained from our bodies, or our heads exploding after getting stomped on by horses-"

"Leave that to me. Just be there with your wand and some clothes. I'll do the rest."

"Fine. Everything else is your responsibility," Draco says, folding his arms. "Don't blame me when you forget to get food."

"Whatever, Draco," she grins, leaning over and kissing him on the cheek. "I won't blame you."

"Good. Because you'd better bring me some food."

"I will. Until tomorrow?"

"Until tomorrow. To the Forbidden Forest we go."


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13: Hermione's Point of View

Hermione doesn't know what else to pack.

She's packed almost everything; books, food, clothes, more books, camping material, water, and even more books. But somehow, she feels she is missing something.

It is a beautiful day, and everyone is out for Hogsmeade except her. She decided to stay back to pack the things for tonight. She had received Draco's letter a few hours ago, telling her to be there at midnight. In other circumstances, Hermione would be pretty scared to go out alone in a forest full of monsters with nothing but a backpack, but this is clearly different.

The sun is shining, no trace of clouds or rain. She can see the beautiful sea ahead of the castle, the water glistening under the sunlight. Students run down the Hogsmeade Hills for fun, and jump into the lake as a last resort. The seventh-year girls are sitting under a tree, casting flirtative looks at the boys in the lake. Everyone seems to have fun and be happy. Not her.

Hermione sighs and bounces up from her bed. Just then, Ginny comes in, not noticing her. She walks to her bunk and lounges on her bed with her homework. Hermione stands there. "Er, Hello?"

Ginny jumps, almost falling off her bed. She sees Hermione and her eyes widen. "Hi."

Hopefully, Ginny has forgotten their fight the other night. Or maybe she forgives her. Hermione crosses her fingers, praying that she hasn't lost her best friend.

Of course, she had jinxed it. "What are you doing here, today? It's Hogsmeade weekend. You should be out with Ron and Harry," Ginny avoids her eyes.

"I couldn't. I had to—do something first," Hermione lies blatantly. Who can sound that obvious?

Ginny raises her eyebrows. "Going somewhere, tonight? Perhaps the Slytherin common room? Or your secret little meetings with—"

"Shut up," Hermione snaps. She has no time for Ginny's mockery. "Just stop. "

"Oh, so you are? Tell me, Hermione, do you go off there every day? You come in at two in the morning and keep muttering to yourself about cabinets and herbs."

"Ginny," she says through gritted teeth. "I have absolutely no idea about what you're talking about. It's none of your business of what I'm up to, anyways."

"It is my business!" Ginny is close to tears now. "I'm your best friend, and I always will be, no matter what! I'm not worried about Malfoy, I'm worried about you! I told you before, you don't know what he's making up or what he's telling the truth about! He tries to charm you, convince you he's good and pure at heart, and then god knows what will happen to you once Voldemort and his family realizes he's been taking help from you! How do you know when trust him?"

Hermione opens her mouth, but closes it again. Part of what Ginny said is true, she has to admit. Draco wasn't at all a truthful person all the time.

"He may be lying, but I will help any person who's in distress or who needs help. He doesn't know what to do, and he won't know anything without me. These days, I've come to care for him. To love him. I can't just let go now. He believes in me."

"Do you believe in him?" She asks shortly.

"Yes. Yes, I do believe in him, and I always will."

Ginny takes a deep breath. "Do whatever you want to do, Hermione. Just remember that this person has called you a Mudblood you're entire life. His father gave me to Voldemort and let me get possessed. This person works for the man that killed Harry Potter's parents."

Hermione bites her lip. "I know what he did. But I also know that he is different now. That behind his hard exterior lays a changed man. I can never deny it. Ever."


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14: Draco's POV

It is midnight.

Draco slips into his shoes and lights up his wand. He is more than just nervous. He's scared. Terrified.

How many people just sneak out of school to go on a suicide mission? He thinks miserably. I'll die young. At least Hermione will be with him when he dies. He doesn't have to bear the pain alone. He'll probably die in her arms or something.

He hurries down the step of the castle and strides across the lawn to Hagrid's house. He tiptoes behind it to find someone already there. She's snoozing over a book, her head laid on one of the barrels.

Draco sighs and walks over. He grabs her shoulder and shakes it. She gasps and her eyes flutter open. She snatches up her wand and aims it at Draco's chest, unable to see him in the dark.

"Who's there?" She whispers.

"Chill, it's just me," Draco lights his wand back up. "Though I am impressed how fast your reflexes are."

She blushes. "You should tell me before you try to yank me awake like that. Or next time I'll stab you."

He laughs. "Okay. Let's go. We don't want to be caught by the oaf."

Hermione glares at him as he helps her up. "The oaf as a name, you know. Hagrid."

"Fine. We don't want to be caught by Hagrid. Happy?"

"Certainly," Hermione grabs the bag and makes her way into the forest. Draco follows her in hesitantly. "Are you sure the cracewood stuff is in here? Because if it isn't, I will be furious."

"Positive. And besides, the Cabinet can never be fixed physically or manually. It has to be done with advanced magic."

"But why? Everything seems to get fixed with my wand. Why not this? "

"Because it has dark magic."

Draco goes silent at that. "That makes sense, I guess," he mutters.

"Now, We'd probably get there in three days if we continuously walk, but you know that's impossible because we have to sleep and eat. So it'll probably be a week before we retrieve it."

"A week? Hermione, that's impossible! Dumbledore would already think that something is going on, because neither you nor I will show up in any of our classes! He'll send someone after us to bring us back, and I'm dead."

"Don't worry, Draco. Didn't I say I've got everything taken care of? I used a Clone Charm for both of us so no one would think anything's wrong."

"What do you mean?"

"What I mean is, I've created duplicate copies of ourselves. They'll take our place at Hogwarts."

Draco gapes at her. How does she fit all this knowledge in her brain? "Have you named them?"

Hermione throws her arms up exasperatedly. "No, of course I haven't! Draco and Hermione! Are you that stupid?"

Draco grins. "I dunno, am I?"

"Forget it. Let's just get this over with." She shoves her way through the entrance, and Draco follows her closely. They walk in silence for a while, and Draco doesn't bother to ask her where they are headed to. She probably knows where it is, anyways, he thinks hopefully.

Unfortunately, it is the opposite. "Where do you think it is?" She asks, breaking their silence, snapping Draco out of his reverie.

"Whatever do you mean? I thought you'd know exactly where we are going to!"

Hermione stares at him. "Draco! You can't expect me to do everything myself! You have to give some contribution, since it is me doing you a favor. A quite dangerous favor, on which you wouldn't survive upon. Consider yourself lucky."

"Lucky? You're crazy! You're the one dragging me off into a dark forest filled with terrifying monsters and not knowing where you're going."

"I've been trying to locate the cracewood, but since it's a rare herb, nobody's recorded where it is. Or at least no one bothered to. From all I know cracewood grows under darkness, where there is no sunlight. It grows in bunches, and silver can kill or harm it," Hermione says.

Draco snorts. "And that's oh so helpful."

She stomps her foot. "Shut up! I'm here because of you, I'm doing all this crap because of you! I should be sleeping soundlessly in my dorm right now, and look at where I am! Does it really look like I want to do this?"

Draco stops abruptly. "Because of me? Granger, as much as I remember, you were the one constantly arguing with me back there about helping me! I never wanted you to be a part of this-I could've handled it perfectly myself."

"You would not, Malfoy!"

Draco smirks at hearing his old nickname again.

"You would've probably kill yourself before you succeed, let alone trying to kill Dumbledore! I'm helping you-" She continues angrily.

"WHAT IS YOUR POINT?" He bellows. "One minute you're telling me you care about me and don't want me to get hurt, and the next minute you're shouting at me about all this shit happening because of ME?"

"It is happening because of you!" Her eyes are glistening with tears. "If I hadn't cared for you, if I hadn't loved you, I would've spit on your face when you'd told me what you were going to do! But I didn't, because I BLOODY CARE FOR YOU!" She shouts angrily.

Draco steps back, shocked. "You didn't say-"

"I did say that, Malfoy! And you know what? Even if you don't care for me, if you hate me, it won't change a single feeling I have for you! Because no matter how much you despise me, I will never stop caring for you! EVER!"

She turns her back to him, wiping away the tears furiously.

Draco comes closer to her. "Look, I didn't mean anything. I'm sorry if I misunderstood you-and I will always care for you, too," he whispers, sliding his arms around her shoulders, but she pushes him away gently. "I'm sorry, Draco-I just need to be alone for a while. "

He nods hesitantly. "Sure. I'll keep watch and you can rest."

"Thank you." She meets his gaze for a second, her eyes red and swollen.

He looks away. "I'll be over there if you need me." He walks away, a sudden, sharp, pain spreading over his heart. His eyes are stinging, yet there are no tears being shed. "Stay strong, Hermione Granger," he whispers to no one in particular. "I won't let anything happen to you. I'll be with you wherever you go."

He strides into the tugging darkness, knowing that the worst is yet to come.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15: Hermione's Point of View

Hermione just can't sleep.

The cold, night chill crawls up her spine, the leaves rustling around her, giving her that suspicious feeling somebody is watching her. She had settled in a sleeping bag, but of course, sleeping bags are the most uncomfortable things to sleep in.

Draco had taken first watch. He is ahead by the edge of the thick brush of trees, and Hermione can see the hazy outline of his slim figure.

She shivers. She was probably a hundred feet away, alone. She had cast some protection enchantments, and they seemed to work, but she isn't sure if they would stay any longer.

The full moon is glowing in the dark night sky, casting shadows on the ground. The dirt she lays upon is hard as rock, bruising her back. Her hair is flying all over her face, and she has to push it away with frustration as she tries to close her eyes.

She remembers how Draco had looked that night in the Room of Requirement. His hair tousled and unkept, his eyes having giant dark circles around them, his lips almost blue. No matter how he looked on the outside, nothing could change how beautiful he was in the inside.

She smiles, wondering what she would do without Draco. And slowly her eyes shut, one last thought floating across her mind. Him.

* * *

The next morning Hermione wakes up early to the sound of crunching leaves.

She lifts her head up lazily to see Draco pulling out a plate of pancakes from Hermione's bag. She gets up slowly and plops down beside him.

He gapes at the pancakes. "Tell me, Hermione, how on earth do you store fresh, hot pancakes in that tiny a bag?"

Hermione smiles, yawning. "Extension charm. The bag has everything I packed inside of it."

"You know, sometimes your brilliant source of magic can be a bit scary."

"I think I've got the idea."

Draco manages a small smile. The awkward conversation they had had last night hangs over them like layers of fog.

"So," he says, biting into his pancake. "When are we setting back out?"

Honestly,all Hermione wants to do right now is pack up camp and start walking again. It made everything seem a bit less nervous for her. "Sure," she shrugs. "We'll leave after you've finished eating."

He gives her a puzzled glance. "Aren't you going to eat, too?"

She shakes her head. "Don't feel like it. Stomach is full," she lies blatantly.

Draco drops the pancake, folding his arms. "I'm not going on like this feeling guilty about eating and that you didn't."

Hermione rolls her eyes. "Do whatever you want. I'm not eating. I'll eat whenever I feel hungry."

Draco shoves the half-eaten pancake in the tiny bag.

Hermione raises her eyebrows. "You know the syrup is going to spread all over the other stuff inside the bag."

Draco shrugs. "You can clean it up with your wand when you want to."

Hermione glares at him dismissively. "Let's go." She takes the bag from his grasp and swings it on her shoulder. "I've been looking at some books and I'm figuring the Cracewood is in a cave or a concealed type of place, so why don't we check out the cave behind the waterfall?"

"There's a cave behind a waterfall? I thought that only happens in movies and stuff."

Hermione sighs. "Yes, Draco, there is a cave behind a waterfall. And we're going to look there."

"Where exactly is the waterfall, then?" Draco asks, kicking away a pile of twigs.

Hermione doesn't answer. She hears sounds, distant, and deep. There are crunching noises of leaves.

She puts an arm out to stop Draco. Draco looks at her and opens his mouth. Hermione puts a finger to her lips. "Shhhh. There's someone-"

She is interrupted by a figure rushing up in front of their path. It is not a person. Hermione gasps. "Is that-" As the figure comes closer, Hermione can make out the yellow eyes and the pointed ears, the silver fur, shining in the moonlight.

It growls, deep in its throat. Draco grabs her arm. "Hermione," he says through gritted teeth. "Walk. Backwards. Slowly." Hermione's eyes widen, but she says nothing. She takes a step back carefully, backing into a tree.

It growls again, this time louder. Hermione slips her hand into Draco's. There happens to be dozens and dozens of wolves behind the larger wolf, their gold-yellow eyes glowing in the dark. Their ears are pointed, alert, and Hermione knows that if she makes one false step, they'd both be wolf meat.

Hermione's foot lands on a twig, and it cracks. The lead wolf's ears prick, and it snarls and pounces.

Hermione screams. Draco pulls her to the side. "Run!" He shouts, grasping her hand in his.

The wolves bark and snarl, dashing after them. Draco leads her farther into the woods. Hermione snaps her head back. The wolves are not too far behind them, and one is only inches away from Hermione's shoe. "They're gaining on us! Other way!" Draco keeps running.

"We have to get them to go the other way-" Hermione loses her grip on his hand, and he shouts in pain as a large lump of fur hurtles towards him. "Draco!" She screams. The wolf tackles him to the ground and raises its paw, claws extended. It brings its paw down across Draco's side, and he screams. The wolf bares it's teeth and lunges forward toward his neck-

"No!" Hermione yanks out her wand and yells, "Incendio!" The wolf yelps in agony as fire catches to his fur. He backs away, hissing. It turns around runs back to its pack, which is currently leading into the opposite side of the woods.

Hermione hurries to Draco's side. She kneels beside his limp body. "Draco?" His eyes are closed, and he seems unconscious. His face is a mess of scratches and claw marks.

Hermione stifles a yelp at the sight of his left side. His shirt had been torn apart, a long, red, scar glistening down his middle. "Oh, no," she whispers, grabbing her bag. "Essence of Dittany, Essence of Dittany-"

She finds the tiny bottle and yanks the cap off. She pours some of it carefully onto his side, and his body shudders. He whimpers.

"Shhhh," she whispers hurriedly. "You'll be alright, don't worry, don't worry," it almost sounds as if she's trying to convince herself. She pours another one or two drops and rubs it on the wound.

She takes a step back and pulls out her wand. "_Vulnera Sanentur_," she says, her mouth quivering. She puts all her concentration, all her power into the spell, closing it like a sealed envelope.

The wound closes slowly, and the blood disappears. But his eyes don't open.

Hermione kneels closer and takes him by the shoulders. "Draco? Draco!" She cries. She presses a finger to his throat. There is a pulse. Why isn't he waking up?

Her heart pounds like a trapped butterfly in a cage. His skin is awfully cold, and his chest is rising and falling very slowly.

And then he coughs. His eyes flutter open, wide, all of his whites showing. He props himself up on his elbows. Hermione feels a wave of relief wash over her. "Hermione," he breathes. "Merlin-"

But Hermione already throws her arms around him and sobs into his hair. 'Oh my God," she whispers. "I was so scared. I didn't know what to do-"

Draco touches his forehead to hers. "You saved me. You used a healing spell. Those are the hardest to ever perform. You did it. Thank you."

Hermione bites her lip. "I'd do anything for you."

He gives a small smile. "I know. So would I."


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16: Draco's Point of View

The wolves are only the beginning.

It has been about a day since the attack from the wolves, and Draco has only started healing from his wounds. They've been walking throughout the forest non-stop, not taking a rest in between different times. Hermione had kept going and going, until she had stumbled upon something very interesting on the ground, and she is investigating it.

"What is it? If it's another giant flobberworm again-" Draco says irritably. The last time they had had an encounter with a creature it was a gigantic earthworm trying to cut Draco's head off.

"I don't know. Remember what I'd said back at the cabin? Silver and cracewood. Look what I found."

She gets up with something glinting in her hands. It is a long plate of pure silver, dented at the sides. "You don't think someone's trying to destroy all the living cracewood?" He asks.

Hermione shakes her head. "I think they're trying to find it. Cracewood attracts Silver, but it is also very harmful to it. Someone has been trying to locate it with Silver. It makes sense."

"Yeah, well, who could that be? There's no other students from the castle, we've already checked that-"

"No. There are ways to reverse protection charms. And ways to detect humans. We haven't found anyone, but who knows how powerful the witch or wizard could be?"

Draco looks away. There is one possibility-

No. His father isn't that stupid-He wouldn't go into a forest just for a herb, who would?

Then again, Draco did. There isn't much of a difference.

"Come on. I've got a feeling we're near a cave." Hermione beckons him after her. She pushes away a couple of vines and gasps. Draco turns his gaze to what she is looking at, and he gasps himself.

There, is a waterfall, with sparkling blue water and crystal clear waves. It is beautiful. And then, he sees the cave.

"You were right, Hermione," he breathes.

Hermione smiles faintly. "Always the tone of surprise."

With that, he pulls her to him, and she gives a small noise of surprise as his arms wrap around her. He buries his face in her hair, which smells like vanilla and lavender-

"Thank you, Draco," she mumbles into his shoulder.

Draco pulls away to study her. "What for?"

"For believing in me. And yourself."

Draco laughs weakly. "Thank _you, _Hermione. For showing me a way of hope and having faith in me."

Hermione looks up and smiles at him. "Shall we go?"

"Not just yet," he says, locking her in his circle of arms again. The corners of her mouth curl and she looks down at her feet. "What is it?"

"Kiss me."

"What? Why?" She sputters.

"Because I asked you to," he leans in, and he can feel her breathing on his face. Her eyes sparkle, golden brown shining like chips of gold.

"I have never heard of a man asking a woman to kiss him. It is merely the opposite."

"Oh? Well now you've heard of it. Just once?"

Hermione snorts. "Don't give me those puppy eyes. It doesn't make it better."

"Hasn't it always been better?" He asks shyly, trying to hide his grin.

"Dear, Draco, are you _flirting _with me?"

"Oh, no, this is just an expression of affection," he says, trying to suppress a laugh.

Hermione tilts her head and looks at him. Up close he can see the tiny little freckles across her nose, and the curve and angle of her pink cheeks, her hair shaping her tiny face.

"Fine."

Draco snaps himself out of his reverie. "Really?" Because I'd never expected you to say yes, I mean, after the fight we had last night, and how I'd yelled at you-"

Hermione grabs the collar of his shirt and yanks his face closer to her own. "I forgave you for all that. A long time ago. Honestly, I don't think I can stay longer than a day not talking or looking at you. Pretty hard."

Draco smirks. "And that I'm the only attractive thing there is for you to look at."

Hermione smiles. "Yes, and that as well."

"Well, actually it depends on how attractive you think I am," he says.

"How attractive do you think I think you are?"  
He blinks stupidly. "You confuse me."

"It was obviously meant to confuse you."

"Don't 'obvious' me. I'm all about obvious."

Hermione puts a palm to his cheek. "We're both obvious," she whispers, a tiny playful smile dancing across her lips. And with that, she leans closer, their faces only centimeters away. He can just randomly grab her and kiss her, but he wants it to be her this time. He wants to feel her lips on his own, not his against hers.

She closes her eyes and presses her lips against his.

Her mouth is just as he had remembered it from the Room of Requirement; soft, gentle, thorough. He slides his fingers into her hair and stay there. Her arms wind themselves around his neck as he uses more pressure against her, and he can feel her shaking.

She pulls away reluctantly. "Happy?"

"I'm delighted," Draco says as she drops her arms awkwardly by her sides. "Shall we continue now?"

"Of course."

"Okay. I was thinking you might want some more-"

Hermione shoves him away. "Come on. We don't have much time."

Draco laughs and Hermione shoots him a glare and it transforms into clearing his throat. "Right. We're here."


End file.
